Chicken and Dumplings

By Brie

Gwyneth makes this dish for her family and now you can make it for yours. It comes together in no time but tastes like it took hours.

Ingredients

• 1 Organic Whole Chicken
• Coarse Salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon Unsalted Butter
• 2 tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 1 Stalk Celery (roughly chopped)
• 1 large Carrot (roughly chopped)
• 1 small Leek (roughly chopped)
• 1 slice Duck Bacon (finely diced)
• 1 dried Bay Leaf
• 1 teaspoon Fresh Thyme Leaves
• 1/2 cup White Wine
• 2 cups Vegetable Stock
• 2 cups Water
• 1 cup Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
• 1 tablespoon Baking Powder
• 1/2 cup plus 1 teaspoon Half-and-Half
• 1/2 teaspoon Fine Salt
• Fresh Parsley (for garnish)

Preparation

Step 1

Preheat oven to 400F.

Wash and dry the chicken. Discard the back and cut the chicken into 10 pieces.

Aggressively season the chicken pieces with coarse salt and pepper.

Heat the butter and olive oil in the largest, widest oven-safe pot you have, at least 12 inches diameter, with a lid, over medium-high heat. Thoroughly brown the chicken pieces, in batches if necessary (7-8 minutes per side), and remove to a plate, leaving the fat in the pot.

Add the vegetables, duck bacon, bay leaf, and thyme to the pot and cook for 15 minutes over medium-low heat.

Return the chicken to the pot. Add the white wine, bring to a boil, and cook for 2 minutes. Add the stock and water, bring to a boil, and season to taste with salt and pepper. Turn off the heat, cover the pot with a circle of parchment paper, and put the lid on top.

Cook the chicken in a 400 degrees F oven for 1 1/2 hours.

Meanwhile, combine the flour, baking powder, half-and-half, and fine salt together in a bowl. Take the pot out of the oven, discard the parchment and scoop large spoonfuls of the dumpling mixture on top of the chicken mixture-you should end up with about 10 dumplings. Cover the pot and put back in the oven for 10 minutes. Sprinkle with parsley and a bit more ground black pepper. Serve immediately, being sure to spoon plenty of the juices over each portion.